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TBILISI, Georgia – President Vladimir V. Putin on Wednesday ordered the restoration of direct flights from Russia to the mountains of the former Soviet republic of Georgia from May 15 and the abolition of visa requirements for Georgian citizens, in the latest sign of a continuing rapprochement between the two nations.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the decision announced Wednesday was made in line with a “principled approach to improving the conditions of communication and contact between citizens of Russia and Georgia.”
Mr. Putin’s decision highlights the deeply complicated relationship between Russia and Georgia, where many members of civil society, pro-Western opposition activists and lawmakers see the Kremlin as a major threat to the country’s stability and security. However, the country’s ruling party strongly supports closer ties with Moscow.
In 2008, Georgia fought a five-day war with Russia that resulted in Moscow’s military taking control of the two breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, or about one-fifth of Georgia’s territory. Since then, Russia and Georgia have not had official diplomatic relations.
Mr Putin banned flights between Russia and Georgia in 2019, after anti-Kremlin protests erupted in central Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia. Russia began requiring visas from Georgian citizens arriving in 2000, citing the risk of terrorism in the North Caucasus, where it was fighting a war in Chechnya at the time.
Mr Putin’s announcement on Wednesday was met with criticism from pro-Western officials and lawmakers in Georgia. President Salome Zourabichvili, who served as the ceremonial head of state, called Mr Putin’s move “provocative” and “unacceptable” as Russia continues to wage war in Ukraine, another former Soviet republic.
He also asked the country’s government to hold a meeting of the security council and discuss the introduction of visa requirements for Russian citizens, who can now stay and work in the country without a visa for up to a year.
Mrs. Zourabichvili has often made clear statements criticizing the Georgian government as being too subservient to Russia, but it is the governing party, Georgian Dream, which has real power over the government’s policies. , but also supports a pragmatic approach to developing relations with the Kremlin.
Relations with Russia have been the subject of heated and polarized debate in Georgia, where many members of the pro-Western opposition argue that the country should impose sanctions on Moscow and more actively support Ukraine.
However, since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Georgia has increased its trade with Russia. It has also emerged as one of the main transit hubs for goods sent between Turkey and Russia, including some from the West. The Georgian opposition has argued that the trade has helped Russia evade some Western sanctions, which the Georgian government denies.
Hundreds of thousands of Russians fled their country because of the invasion of Ukraine and Mr. Putin ordered months later to mobilize troops for the war. Many have settled in Georgia, giving the country’s economy by relocating assets there.
Georgia’s pragmatic approach to relations with Russia has won praise from Sergey V. Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, who said in January that the decision to refrain from imposing sanctions was “an order of honor” from Russia.
According to Mr. Putin’s order, Georgian citizens have the right to enter Russia without a visa and stay there for 90 days.
The Russian Ministry of Transport said in a statement that seven flights will operate between Moscow and Tbilisi each week, and that the aircraft used will all be Russian-made. The Georgian government said it would only allow flights by airlines not yet placed under Western sanctions, according to RIA Novosti, a Russian news agency. Most of Russia’s major airlines, including Aeroflot, are under the sanctions.
Roman Gotsiridze, a member of Georgia’s opposition parliament, said in a statement on his Facebook account that Mr. Putin’s decision on travel and visas had “put Georgia on the same rank” as Belarus, “a friendly country for Russia.”
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